A New York City influencer is coming under fire after admitting she ran the Brooklyn Half Marathon last weekend without paying.
Alexa Curtis, who has more than 23,000 followers on Instagram and another 13,000 on X, posted a video and accompanying tweet about how she ran the entire 13.1 miles without registering or paying to run the race.
The cost for those runners who participated is $125.
Curtis wrote a lengthy tweet explaining how the race had been cathartic for her with the race route, bringing back memories of her time in Brooklyn.
‘I just ran 13.1 miles for the Brooklyn Half Marathon at a pace of 7.43 minutes. I didn’t walk at all. “I cried for a long time,” he said. ‘I went to bed at 10 at night. I didn’t sign up for this race. I just asked security where it started and where it ended and I jumped.
New York City influencer Alexa Curtis sparked controversy after confessing to running the Brooklyn Half Marathon without paying the $125 entry fee.
Curtis shared a video and tweet about his unrecorded 13.1-mile run, omitting the $125 fee, highlighting the emotional significance of his run.
Along with her video, Alexa Curtis posted a lengthy tweet about her career.
Curtis was criticized by online users who were unhappy with her behavior.
‘No one saw me cross the finish line this year. I didn’t charge my AirPods last night. I didn’t train for this. The most I have run in the last 13 months was 6 miles. Last night I had two glasses of wine.
Curtis, who founded Be Fearless Inc., a “reinvented professional brand” dedicated to “helping you be brave and the boss of your own life,” recounted how he had rushed past his first apartment in Brooklyn, where he had endured heartbreak in both business and your personal life.
‘I ran past my first apartment in Brooklyn, where I lived when I was broke and blogging while living with five roommates.
‘Over the past year I have faced the worst heartbreak in business and in my personal life. He moved to a different country. I got so bad in business. I got out of debt and back into debt. The only person I trusted to show up and cross the finish line today was myself,” Curtis continued.
But those who read his message and watched his online video saw his cheapness very differently and were amazed that he had the audacity to run the race without paying.
Banditing (running a race without registering) is particularly controversial in the world of athletics because registration fees are used to pay for course support, such as security, medical staff, water and energy drinks.
A portion of the registration fees usually goes to charity.
Alexa Curtis describes herself as the CEO of Alexa Curtis Consulting with her motto ‘Be Fearless’
Curtis founded Be Fearless Inc., a “reimagined professional brand” dedicated to “helping you be fearless and the boss of your own life.”
“It’s a bit unfair to others who have paid for police support, road closures and first aid…” Lorna Roberts wrote.
‘Life isn’t fair :(‘ Curtis responded.
“Bad attitude, do better,” replied X user Stefan Lingmerth.
‘You are a bandit and you stole from this race and this community. These things are expensive and for charity. What a shame,” added another user.
‘This is really false and selfish. I’m sorry you felt like cheating the system was the way to be “brave.” You could have run 13.1 through Central Park, buddy. I hope they ban you from more of their races. (You already knew the risks when you decided to do this) And you can get up your self-righteous “life isn’t fair” ass, another stated.
On Monday Curtis apologized to his followers but the criticism did not stop.
On Monday, Curtis apologized to his followers.
The criticism did not stop with more online users piling in and demanding better in the future.
‘I didn’t realize it would offend so many people. The post was meant to be inspirational and was not intended to take anything away from anyone or the race – I was running for myself for my mental health. In the future I will be sure to check the rules if I decide to run again,” Curtis said.
‘You knew the rules. “If everyone did what you did, what do you think would happen?” Lingmerth intervened.
‘It is very clear why we cannot move forward. “You are a scammer, you are entitled and you are deeply unpleasant,” Camilla Rhodes wrote.
‘You’re inspiring people to cheat the system by not donating to charitable events and then bragging about it online by calling it brave. Money, time and resources go into an event like that, which in turn helps people. You took advantage of it to try to get up,’ Nikki stated.
‘If you really feel it, you would make a donation of the ticket to the event’s main charity. Everything else is just words and your only regret is that you were reported for what is basically cheating. How would your customers feel if you were a cheater? Be better,” added David Swales.
The NYCRUNS Brooklyn Half, whose course passes under the Williamsburg, Manhattan and Brooklyn bridges before ending in Prospect Park, issued a statement condemning Curtis’ behavior.
‘We had a record number of runners at Sunday’s NYCRUNS Brooklyn Half Marathon with over 21,000 official finishers.
‘Our top priority is the safety and well-being of each of those runners, and the bib that each runner wears is their lifeline if a medical issue arises on the track. It is dangerous to run a race without a race number and it is not fair for the thousands of runners who have one.’
